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Okay. Seriously. We need to talk about Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. Ninja Theory’s stunning adventure platformer has been on my radar for a long time (pretty much since I saw the first screenshot), and a few weeks back I finally had some time to sit down and play through it, and what I found was one of 2010’s true hidden gems. And since the moment the closing credits rolled, I have been insisting to anyone who will listen that they need to play it.

And now I bring those heartfelt insistences to you all, because this game needs your support in a big way, and thanks to Amazon, you can now pick up a copy for just $25! If you are one of the those people who cries about there not being any great original IPs to play, it's time to put up or shut up.

Now, I know Call of Duty: Black Ops fever is in full swing, and there are quite a few big games coming out between now and the end of the year, but, seriously, do not let Enslaved pass you by. There is a reason people have been comparing the game to Ubisoft’s own tragically overlooked Beyond Good & Evil. Not only do both games feature similar character types and gameplay, but they both are drenched in the passion and love of their creators.

Everything from the lush and richly detailed game world to the performances to the character animations to the story is crafted with tremendous care and gives the game a fantastic sense of life and vibrancy. The developers also took some clear cinematic and platforming cues from Naughty Dog's acclaimed Uncharted series, which adds a spectacular scope and fluidity to the presentation and gameplay.

However, barring some massive and sudden upswing in sales (I’m trying Ninja Theory! I really am!), it looks like Enslaved is destined to go beyond simply being stylistically reminiscent of BG&E and end up becoming the BG&E of this generation. I sincerely hope this doesn’t happen, but if it does, I just hope Namco Bandai, like Ubisoft with BG&E, doesn’t give up on it.

The fact that there is downloadable content being released before the end of the year is a good sign, but it will most likely be a while before it becomes clear what the next step in the game’s (so far troubled, but hopefully eventually prosperous) journey will be.